Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Mushahidullah Khan, 68, died in Islamabad on Wednesday night, party spokesman Muhammad Zubair confirmed.
The cause of death was not immediately clear. Mushahidullah was one of the five who had been awarded a ticket to contest the upcoming Senate elections on a general seat.
Mushahidullah used to come to the Senate sessions with great determination and courage, Zubair said, adding that the senator was a fearless man and stood firm against dictatorships.
Khan had been a member of the Senate since March 2018 and previously served as minister for climate change.
“Senator Mushahidullah Khan, MNS’s loyal and exceptional companion left us. I am shattered to hear the sad news,” PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz said on Twitter.
“[We] Will never be able to forget his fatherly affection & love. Huge huge loss. May Allah SWT shower upon him every blessing that HE has reserved for the afterlife. Ameen,” she added.
Foreign Minister and key leader of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Shah Mahmood Qureshi expressed grief over the death of the Mushahidullah. He said Khan was a seasoned politician and a good human being. He also prayed for the departed soul.
Senator Faisal Javed Khan of the ruling PTI also expressed grief over the death of Senator Mushahidullah and said that he will miss him dearly.
Ahsan Iqbal said that PML-N had lost a “very brave, loyal and shrewd parliamentarian”. Iqbal also offered prayers for the deceased.
“Deeply saddened to know about the death of Senator Mushahidullah Khan sb, it’s a huge loss. Our heartfelt condolences goes with his family and all PMLN workers, may his soul rest in peace,” MNA Moshin Dawar said on the popular micro-blogging site.
The senior PML-N leader was the chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Aviation and a member of the Council of Chairpersons and various others standing committees.
He was also part of the parliamentary committees on Appointment of Chief Election Commissioner and Members of the Election Commission of Pakistan, Kashmir, and National Security.
Khan was born in 1953 in Rawalpindi. He did his early education at Islamia High School in Rawalpindi and completed graduation from Gordon College in Rawalpindi. He received LLB degree from Urdu Law College, the University of Karachi in 1997.
He joined the PML-N in 1990. 1999, Khan was once beaten up at Karachi’s Regal Chowk while holding a press conference against the military coup by General (r) Pervez Musharraf. His clothes had been torn and he was moved to the Central Jail and then Landhi Jail for more than a month.
Khan was a trusted aide of Nawaz Sharif ever since the PML-N supreme leader was forced into exile. First appointed party information secretary and later made a senator in 2009, he also served as the party spokesperson for many years.
Khan’s funeral prayers of will be offered in 11-H Islamabad after Zuhr prayer.
